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Music Cognition

This course will introduce students to modern research on music perception and cognition. By nature, this research is interdisciplinary. Some is conducted by cognitive scientists, some by music scholars. We will study a cross-section of this research and touch on many of the field's principal topics, including: the perception of rhythm, meter, pitch, timbre, melody, harmony, and key; the relationship between music and emotion; the effect of auditory physiology on the musical experience; the role of performers in shaping a listener's perceptions; and the process by which music establishes, fulfills, and denies expectations. No prequisites.